The kangaroo and the opossum are as distantly related as the man and mouse, she said. So, having both projects running at the same time would be useful in telling what genes are special to kangaroos and what are common to marsupials in general.

Sequencing the genome of kangaroos and other marsupials could also benefit human health and agriculture, Graves said.

"Kangaroos can turn on and off the development of embryos which could offer insights for [human] contraception and infertile couples," Graves said.

The kangaroo is also a sophisticated milk producer and is resistant to pests such as ticks. Knowing the genetic basis to these attributes could be useful for Australia's beef and dairy industries, Graves said.

The consortium will sequence the genome of a small type of kangaroo, the tammar wallaby.

"Funding for the Australian project went down to the wire," Graves said.

The U.S. government's National Institutes of Health (NIH) had offered the Australian researchers A$6 million (US$4.6 million) to fund the research, but only if Australian funders matched that by 31 March.

At the last moment the Victorian state government increased its commitment to the project from A$1.5 million to A$4.5 million, making up the funding shortfall.